Pocket Of Lollipops

http://blogs.browardpalmbeach.com/countygrind/2013/08/pocket_of_lollipops_maitejosun.php

Live at Sweat
Maitejosune Urrechaga is a South Florida artist working in so many creative areas, that there's too many to mention in this intro: comic books, films, novels. She is perhaps best known as the "better half" of Miami's Pocket of Lollipops, a husband and wife outfit where she plays bass and shares vocal duties with her husband drummer Tony Kapel.

The duo has been instrumental in merging South Florida's stuffy art scene with a spunkier, all-fun, no-gloom attitude. The aural results are an art-punk, danceable, no wave sound that glistens in the diabetic saccharine glory of power-pop. New Times has spoken to her hubby in the past, but on the release of their latest 7" record, Letters to Larrup, we decided to check in with Urrechaga. She revealed plans for an upcoming sonic blowout set in Horse Country, gave insights into keeping a marriage successful, and spoke about her affections for the Grateful Dead.
See also: Five Questions With Pocket of Lollipops' Tony Kapel
New Times: You guys have been very active since you started in 2009. Is marriage a benefactor or detractor on the musical arrangement of Pocket of Lollipops? ?Maitejosune Urrechaga: I would say a benefactor. We both know each other's schedules, so working around things is super convenient for us. Plus our house is like a giant creative playground. One room for music, another for art, we change things up a lot also. I think we have had our bed in every part of our house except for the kitchen. Let's put it this way, our living room is probably not the usual married couple's living room.
On the marriage note, I'm interested in knowing about musical creation. I have a good idea of Tony's leanings but I'm not really aware of yours, how did your record collections merge and how is the creative process handled in tandem with home life??When I was younger, my musical taste came from my older sister and mother. My sister and I were allowed to go to concerts at a very young age; the only rule was we had to go together. We actually slept out for concert tickets all the time. It is funny my mom wouldn't let us sleepover friends houses but on the street in front of Eckerd's and Spec's was okay. She would bring us doughnuts and check up on us. Lots of people were there, so it was super fun times.
My mom had a big influence on going to live shows because she always regretted that her mother didn't let her go see Elvis. My mom said she would never do that to her girls, so she let us go to everything. Okay, back to my music taste, my sister introduced me to the Pixies, Violent Femmes, Beastie Boys, Cocteau Twins and some others, but those really stick in my head. I had a big phase in middle school with metal music and in high school I got into a lot of classic rock and hip-hop. I was a big Deadhead, and luckily got to see them many times in Miami and outside of Miami.
I really fell in love with the Dead because I was always able to find rare types of live recordings they did. In high school, I also got very heavy into collecting records. I was a big fan of Y&T and Yardbird Records. I still own my whole "dead collection" on vinyl that's over 25 records that I collected with a friend during my high school years. There are definitely things that both Tony and I share musically, you will always hear Pink Floyd, Modest Mouse, Dr. Dre, and a few others that we both enjoy playing on the computer in the house. And then when it comes to newer stuff, I am usually the one who finds it.
See also: Pocket of Lollipops Goes Mailboxing in "Cute Chaos" Video

?"Puma Shake"
I went through a phase in finding present female artists (before they were big) like Crystal Castles, Bat for Lashes, Lykke Li, CocoRosie that go beyond the media's female pop image. I listen to about eight hours of music a day. I think most music and art has a direct correlation with what is going on in the world. The more I got involved with Pocket of Lollipops, the more I noticed how much I was influenced by female musicians and duos. Love Pat Benatar, Blondie, Cyndi Lauper, Bikini Kill, Eurythmics, Bjork... No surprise that deep down I always had a riot grrrl mentality. I think my friends knew it, maybe I just didn't know what it was called. I did have a cool nickname in high school 'SAM' (Swiss Army Maite). I was very clever at a lot of things, getting out of trouble, changing break pads, building fun things, opening doors, finding food for everyone, I'm sure the list goes on.
In reference to Tony, he always educates me on things both past and present. Tony knows so much history, it amazes me. I'm more of a math, pattern person. Though we are always open to hearing each other's influences at the end of the day, if I want to listen to something in the house I - Abel Folgar, Broward New Times

Pocket of Lollipops is a posh-punk South Florida outfit made up of husband-wife duo Maitejosune Urrechaga and Tony Kapel. Both visual artists, the couple began experimenting with music as part of an audio visual art installation, eventually collaborating on lyrics and taking up the drums (Kapel) and the bass (Urrechaga) to refine their sound. The couple has been hosting the Cashmere Kitties Music Festival for the past three years, bringing local bands from a broad spectrum of genres and age ranges out of the bars and live music venues in Miami and in front of audiences that may not necessarily have had a reason to mingle. We chat with Tony Kapel before this weekend’s show.

How and when did Pocket of Lollipops start?
Pocket of Lollipop’s first show was back in 2009. It started as sound experience that we did for Art and Culture Center in Hollywood, Florida.

Why the name Pocket of Lollipops?
We always thought it was interesting how a doctor pulls out a lollipop to make you feel better after your visit.

How does Pocket of Lollipops integrate itself with South Florida’s art scene?
We do performances many times for galleries but we also create site specific art pieces that pair up with what we our doing musically. For example, last year for Downtown Art Days we ironed pockets stuffed with random things onto people while we created sounds and chanted.

Where are you guys from?
Maite comes from another planet where they make people like her. She is a giant energy ball all the time. I am a Miami native with all my fingers and toes and then some.

What current projects are you both working on?
Today we just finished making two giants heads for our friends because we are all going to the Arcade Fire aka the Reflektors on Thursday. We have a bunch of new songs but are not planning to record them yet. Maite has an art show in November. Tony has started Houndstooth booking Collective which will allow us to set up more shows for ourselves and other bands, and we are dabbling with the idea of tying in recording opportunities for bands. We have an artist residency In Rhode Island in June 2014; we will be doing some art and musical performances. We have two special videos being released. The one I can tell you about is being released on October 31st. Keep your eyes peeled for it.

How does your marriage tie into the band? Is it beneficial?
For us it is a plus. We communicate well both on projects and our relationship. We understand each other’s schedules so things always seem to fall into place.

From when you first started to now, what has changed as a band in the local music scene? Do you see it advancing?
I see many more venues supporting live music again. I see a mix of generations supporting many bands so the circles are expanding which makes for more interesting crowds

What are the band’s future plans?
We are looking into more art/music residency. We have another tour planned for summer 2014. We have plans to go overseas. We have a coloring book in the making.

What are some things you both like to do in Miami for fun?
Anything as long as we can avoid traffic. We love the beach on any day, or just a good walk in my neighborhood. We love candy stores but just to look at all the pretty colors and shapes of things. - Catherine Toruno , Miami Herald

The notion of dropping acid and smoking opium while having the world’s strangest dream is the best way to describe the new 7” from Miami art rock duo Pocket of Lollipops. A husband and wife pair steeped in the sound of Sonic Youth-esque art rock, their latest release, “Letters to Larrup,” is a trippy walk through frantic beats, repetitive bass lines, moody electronics, and vocals that recite loose lyrical poetry.


Recorded on Pro Tools at their home in Coconut Grove, drummer/singer Tony Kapel and bassist/singer Maitejosune Urrechaga sectioned off their house into an ideal recording environment. The open sounds they worked for are apparent – one can hear the natural distance and room ambience created by far-placed microphones and unmuffled drums. They even recorded some parts in their bathroom for a reverb effect.

Simple linear guitar lines and echo textures add to the hypnotic mood already set by the rest of the instruments. They mix with the occasional chimes or other auxiliary arrangements in place to enhance the dark, strange experience.


Photo: Monica McGivern
All of these elements swirl together to create a mind-melding indie rock frenzy, exemplified by the peak of the third track, “Diamond Tongue.” In it, Urrechaga exclaims, “Chase, chase, chase, chase! Stay, stay, stay, stay! Pray, pray, pray, pray…” It formulates a weird trance that characterizes the entire album. “Letters to Larrup” leaves one with the dizzying realization that while it sports an organic sound, it still eerily detaches the listener from reality. One finds themselves still on Earth, but perhaps in another dimension – or far in the past or future.

In addition to their musical endeavors, both Urrechaga and Kapel work in the visual arts. Kapel also writes and is a filmmaker.


Sneak peak of a drawing for an animated music video in the works by @christopher_ian_macfarlane
While it was originally released on March 13, 2013, the 7? just recently became available for free download via the New York based label, Team-Love Records. - Robert Nevel, Tropicult

Sonic Youth meets The Fall in “Angry Kitten”, the best song this duo has ever made. “Angry Kitten” features Maite Urrechaga at her Kim Deal-like best (especially when she sings, “So to wake you up, honey/Ding, ding ding, ding, ding, but you miss that pussycat”) and Tony Kapel doing a Fred-Schneider-through-a-funnel impression. The minimalists win. - William Alton, Beached Miami

Miami art punks Pocket of Lollipops have released a video for “Angry Kittens”, the lead track from their latest LP, Broken Balloon. Directed by Chris Salazar, the video meshes decelerated live footage from a Wynwood show during Art Basel 2011 with sensually sinking red lollipops and colored discs encircling the mouths of bassist/vocalist Maite Urrechaga and drummer/vocalist Tony Kapel. As on previous material, “Angry Kittens” features Urrechaga at her Kim Deal-like best (especially when she sings, “So to wake you up, honey/Ding, ding ding, ding, ding, but you miss that pussycat”) and Kapel doing a Fred-Schneider-through-a-funnel impression. The duo once again prove that K Records-styled minimalism is still fresh and evolving. - William Alton, Beached Miami

Pocket of Lollipops Goes Mailboxing in "Cute Chaos" Video

By Jose Flores Wed., Mar. 21 2012 at 3:49 PM

Categories: A Compelling Visual, Local Music


Husband-and-wife wonder twins Pocket of Lollipops' wonderful new video, "Cute Chaos," leans more on the cute than the chaos. Yeah, mailboxing, fire-shit stomping, and loitering are badass ways to spend the day; but that's more like delinquency. The song is tense as hell, the muted bass sounds like rubber bands that are about to snap, and the drum beat feels like the uphill climb on the Doppel Looping Star -- neé Double Looper.

The beautifully shot video opens up with drummer, husband, and perpetual teenager Tony Kapel setting up his drum kit and amassing weapons of suburban warfare -- y'know, baseball bats, Tootsie Roll Pops, and dog poo. Shortly after, barefoot singer, bassist, and wife Maitejosune Urrechaga stumbles through a patchwork of pedals and wires; she begins talking to us and Kapel in the whisperiest voice since Kim Gordon on the Sonic Youth eulogy "Tunic."

The video plays like a very special episode of Pete and Pete about the horrors of mailboxing. Their first victim -- played by the funniest thing out of South Florida since ¿Que Pasa USA? Freddy Stebbins -- falls for the old "flaming bag of dog poo" trick. We tracked down Stebbins and asked him about the video shoot.

About finding his inner jerky dad, Stebbins says, "My buddy [video director] Alex Alvarez asked me if I'd portray a grumpy, older, angry neighbor who hates the neighborhood teens down the street. Alex told me to make sure that I 'hated these punks!'"

Enough talk. More rock! Watch the fancy video. - Jose Flores, Broward New Times

Sonic Purrs
Miami New Times
After you jog through the so-called high culture of Art Basel at the Miami Beach Convention Center and bask in the glow of curator masturbation material, your eyes and paws will need a break. Your ears, however, could use some stimulation. Cashmere Kitties is a mind-expanding, consciousness-warping Basel satellite music festival. Visual artists and Pocket of Lollipops’ rock duo Tony Kapel and Maitejosune Urrechaga curated this luxuriously psychedelic three-day, 12-act lineup. The beats will blare at the Kohn Compound, home of a large street mural installation. The fair boasts 30,000 square feet of installations, sculptures, and graffiti art situated under the sun and stars. Participating local bands and DJs will break sonic boundaries. This fearless group will haunt your audio dreams with pure sound quality. From the brain-fuck hip-to the intergalactic beats of Armando Von Feathers, Cashmere Kitties will be a beacon of light in your art blackout. It all takes place Thursday through Saturday from 5 to 11:30 p.m. Other bands in the lineup are Lowercase, Boxwood, Datamouth, Shuttle Life, Chalk, Aleks Violet, Altus Noumena, Jiriki, True Steez, Jolt Radio, and Andie Sweet Swirl - Miami New Times

Do you enjoy art, fashion, film, and music?

If the answer is no, you probably aren't human. But if the answer is yes, you should go buy tix for Miami New Times' Artopia 2012, "an event," according to the official Facebook page, "that promotes art for people."

There's gonna be an interactive installation by the TM Sisters, couture creations by Luis Valenzuela, "complimentary drinks and hors d'oeuvres," not to mention totally rad tuneage from Otto Von Schirach, Dino Felipe, Pocket of Lollipops, Boise Bob and the Backyard Band, and This Heart Electric.


This Heart Electric
He co-founded electro-punk duo Animals of the Arctic. He masterminds local music showcase Death to the Sun, AKA SoFla's annual apocalypse party in honor of the autumnal equinox. And now he (i.e. Ricardo Guerrero) is This Heart Electric, a one-man band that likes to describe itself as "pop weird."


Boise Bob and the Backyard Band
Equal parts "traditional country," "rootsabilly," and "comedy," this kooky quintet is a swampland junk band starring Boise Bob on hollers and guitar, Tex Merlot on the electrified washboard, Owen Cash on washtub bass and mouth organ, Darnell Hotdog on banjo, and Rufus Bacongrease on fiddle. Get drunk till the "Well Runs Dry." Sing along to "Swamp Song." And gobble up that "Possum Meat," y'all.


Pocket of Lollipops
With songs called "Posh Punk Birthday," "Angry Kittens," and "Cute Chaos," this husband-and-wife tag team (writer-slash-filmmaker Tony Kapel on drums and visual artist Maite Urrechaga on guitar) is an adorably angst-y indie rock kinda thing. Just imagine if pre-divorce Kim and Thurston of Sonic Youth took a couple's retreat to Japan, got real deep into Tokyo cat cafe culture, and decided to record a concept album in the hotel bathroom.


Dino Felipe
He's released 50 albums, including Xanaxconversex, No Fun, Fantision, My Vomit Is A Crystal Ball, and Please Enjoy This. He's caused noisy chaos alongside Venetian Snares and stormed the stage at the Bruise Cruise kickoff party. He's even "trash-cycled" your old jeans and t-shirts to make you look rad. What hasn't Dino done? Well, cure cancer. That's about it.


Otto Von Schirach
If you hail from the 305 and you aren't already Otto's most rabid fan, we here at Crossfade would really like to know: Where the fuck you been? Trapped under a two-ton red rock on Mars? Lost inside the underwater wreckage of an oil tanker somewhere near the center of the Bermuda Triangle? This intergalactic bass warrior is Miami's Best Solo Musician.

Miami New Times' Artopia 2012 with Otto Von Schirach, Dino Felipe, Pocket of Lollipops, Boise Bob and the Backyard Band, and This Heart Electric. Thursday, March 8. Villa 221, 221 NE 17th St., Miami. The party starts at 8 p.m. and ends at 11. Tickets cost $20 to $60 plus fees via ticketfly.com. Ages 21 and up. Visit the Artopia minisite. - Sean Pajot

http://blogs.browardpalmbeach.com/countygrind/2012/01/pocket_of_lollipops_trauma_hawk_dada_delray_beach.php

Starving as an artist sucks. Starving, period, sucks. That's why it's so sweet that Dada is hosting Trauma Hawk, a co-op event for artists to sell their usable art, made mostly with recycled materials, this Sunday. They'll make money and do things like eat with it.

Artist and musician Maitejosune Urrechaga is not only bringing some of her own artwork to the venue but she's also performing original music with her husband and bandmate, Tony Kapel, as Pocket of Lollipops. The sophisticated punk-rock band blurs the lines between art and music. "Last time we played at Dada," she says, "we got a bunch of the audience members to participate in a little coloring project while we played."

Pocket of Lollipops were originally contacted by one of Dada's waiters in November to play a show there. It was then that they charmed organizers of Trauma Hawk, Lauren Shapiro and Uzma Shareef. The two invited the Miami-based band to act as the soundtrack to a unique shopping experience in Delray Beach.

Shapiro and Shareef began the project when they decided to clear out a bunch of extra stuff they had laying around their studio. The idea, half-jokingly, is that it is an "emergency artisan life support task force." This is the second time they've put on this sort of event. The two formed something called the Slingshot Artists Coalition, which they describe as "a community of artists, musicians and free thinkers who come together to share ideas and help propel each other forward in the community."

Kapel and Urrechaga together and separately are involved in every aspect of the art world. Urrechaga's work "Mind the Snails" was named Best of Art Basel in 2006 by Miami New Times. She and Kapel recently created the concept behind a superwoman alligator statue that is displayed at Sawgrass Mills, supported by the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood. Kapel, a longtime drummer, is also a filmmaker and an author whose new book, The Halls Ways, features his original artwork.

Converted from a house built in the 1920s, Dada is the perfect venue for this affair. Its menu includes s'mores -- hullo, can't get more DIY than that.

You may ask from whence the name Trauma Hawk came. Ever hear of Rambo? Urrechaga said, when asked if she was a fan, "Who doesn't like Rambo?" She believes this Sunday's event will be great and describes it as "controlled rowdy. Imagine a cat chasing a bird."

Buy some art and listen to Pocket of Lollipops at Dada, 52 N. Swinton Ave., Delray Beach, on Sunday, January 22, from 7 p.m. to midnight. - Broward New Times

This Saturday, we’ve booked two bands that couldn’t have more opposite- sounding band names. One band name, Pocket Of Lollipops, evokes feelings of happiness, skipping through fields, gently caressing a baby alpaca; the other band name, The Butchers, stirs up images of bloodshed, cleavers, and fallen angels. Let me clarify, these descriptions don’t describe the each band’s music. Pocket Of Lollipops sound like a mix of the B52's, The Fiery Furnaces, and The Dead Kennedys. Despite the their band name, The Butchers play a happy-go-lucky brand of piano rock that induces random shouts of “goodness gracious, GREAT BALLS OF FIRE!”. That being said, I’ve conjured up some analogies with corresponding images that show opposites cohabiting in the same space.
We’ll start with the obvious, POCKET OF LOLLIPOPS is to THE BUTCHERS, as GIANT LOLLIPOPS are to FAMOUS SERIAL KILLERS.


…..as DANIA JAI ALAI is to CHARLES MANSON


and last but not least, ……..as LYRIKILL.COM is to EMILIO ESTEVEZ

EmilikillDotCom, best known for his hit single "I Love My Lambo"
Ok, so I totally butchered (no pun intended) SAT-style analogies as we know them, but you get the picture. - greenroom

This husband and wife duo, one of 13 local acts on our Nevermind tribute album, make uncomfortable D.I.Y. music fun. A minimalist folk-punk dirge, “After Friday’s Blackness” finds the enchanting Maite Urrechaga doing her best Kim Gordon impression while hubby Tony Kapel channels the casual talk-sing commentary of D. Boon, especially when he drops the line: “It’s days like this that expose who we really are”. - Beached Miami

Cashmere Kitties Music Festival. With Pocket of Lollipops, Mr. Feathers, Metro Zu, and others. Thursday, December 1, to Saturday, December 3, 6:30 p.m., The Kohn Compound, 219 NW 24th St., Miami. No cover. All ages. No doubt, Basel can get pretty sketchy. So if you're seeking a safehouse, hit the Kohn Compound for Cashmere Kitties' three-day music fest. - S.Pajot, Miami New Times

I never thought we needed another husband-and-wife duo on drums and guitar until I heard the strange, compelling, dissonant music of Pocket of Lollipops. This Miami duo fell into music after excelling at the other arts: Maite Urrechaga is a visual artist and Tony Kapel is a writer and filmmaker. The music they make together channels the energy, spontaneity and antiestablishment ethos of the New York No Wave movement of the early ‘80s – many of whose band members also dabbled in other art forms – creating an exciting antidote to the increasing sameness of so much indie rock today. - John Thomason, Bocamag

Pocket of Lollipops performance is a range from an indefinite mix of culture and technology they have evolved a limitless sensation to stimulate various compression and transverse physical properties to produce a sense of intensity allowing the listener to feel as if they are in a floating or dreamlike state. - Tanya Vega, Chicago

the coolly bizarro, No Wave stylings of Pocket of Lollipops. - Flavorpill

zany avant-pop from Pocket of Lollipops - broward new times

?Tony Kapel is a sun-bathed and tropical version of the Renaissance man.

He is a visual artist, writer, musician, scuba diver, and part-time animal wrangler for local cable access television. And he's also one half of the husband and wife band Pocket of Lollipops who'll be going on tour this summer. It's almost wondrous that he manages to squeeze meals and naps into his daily routine.

Crossfade recently had a chance to ask him five questions about his past, present, and future.

Crossfade: Who are you and where do you come from?

Tony Kapel: Born and raised in Miami. The middle child with much to blame on that position. Stock family setup: a single mom with three kids.

You are a visual artist, filmmaker, writer, and musician. How closely related are these disciplines for you? Anything else you'd to try your hand at? Surgery?

The books I've done are filled with drawings of mine. The first book was more of a phase of statements I would draw in bold letters, so the artist and writer blended. Also, the first book has a script built around it and a loosely done film that was shot back in 2008-ish and I am re-editing it now. It will be shorter than originally planned. But it will be complete, the actual script is still undone. And as far as other realms, I'd like to get into knife-making.

Your documentary Closing Time is a pretty good snapshot of an exciting era in South Florida's music and art scene. Do you have a follow-up project in mind?

Closing Time was supposed to be built around two specific artists. I realized they shared a studio with four or five other artists, so I started covering all of them.

I've been filming the music and art scene since 1998 or so. The next film will consist of footage from Slack Lounge, Bushwhacker, Poplife from Piccadilly and the Party Avenger. This footage will be a little more of the candid old stuff. Everyone's much younger, so it's a nice look even further back than the first one. These films are only going to make sense in five years or so.

Pocket of Lollipops paints a picture of saccharine harmony. However, knowing that it is a husband and wife effort, without prying too much, is there a wretched underbelly of marital competition guiding the machine?

Maite picked up the bass while I was playing with a former band. So when that disbanded, it only made sense for us to work with each other. We have a steady method of creating the songs: She takes MIDI tracks I make and puts a bass line to them. I add the drums. She takes writings of mine and takes what she likes and organizes them for our lyrics. And it seems as if the music is maturing. This is her first music project, so she's never had to deal with the "leader." It's nice.

What projects can we expect from you musically, visually, or literarily? And where can our readers purchase your past work?

My latest project is my fourth book release titled "The Halls Ways." It's built around the school system and a half-paranoid security guard who fears the future as he witnesses minimal manners, little to no common sense, and the lack of parental control. I fear that when these last few and the ones ahead will have a great amount of knuckleheads in control, Neanderthal-style. The character has a hard time dealing with the reality that his new neighbors are not from here and they are able to squeeze nine people into a two bedroom apartment. It discusses our superintendent, our governor and [the fact that] the school system has become a business more than anything right now.

My work can be found at Books and Books in the Gables, the Bookstore in the Grove, and Sweat Records. The book should be done in the next few weeks. My personal deadline is end of April.
- new times

&C Music Factory once asked: "Y'all want this party started right?" We did and we do. We wanted this gallery season started right, and Dorsch Gallery managed to do it with Bubble Raft. Last night's season kickoff, with live music and standout sculptures, was much more than just an opening.

Bubble rafts are metal bubbles that settle on the surface of water, demonstrating imperfection and unpredictability in the atomic structure of metal.


Robbin Griffiths - My Excitement May Not Be Typical
Patterns and imperfections abounded in each of the distinctive works that filled the stark gallery space. After visiting many artists' studios, Brook Dorsch was inspired to curate this sculpture-only show. The gathering of these "bubbles" offered an island of creativity and a warm, vibrant party in an otherwise quiet Wynwood, on a regular Wednesday night.

?Humor and cleverness are the elements that shape the exhibition. Bruce Conkle's coconut mobiles are garnished with foam rings and quartz mountains, resembling a homemade, yet intricate galaxy. Carlos Rigau's "Adoration for the Golden Cow" features the sounds of Bojangles tap dancing, a stuffed monkey, and the head of a cow, collaged with black tape and tiny lips and eyes. It is mesmerizing, horrifying, and, in typical Rigau style, really funny. The weather outside was stifling, and to offer a moment of coolness, collective Toot created an Anti-Sweat Lodge on the lawn, marked with a handwritten sign, which lowered the temperature with liquid nitrogen.


?
The art was enhanced by a full-on festival of local musicians. This included the bass-and-drum duo Pocket of Lollipops, who gave us some sophisticated psychedelic punk. Hallandale country group Boise Bob and his Backyard Band introduced themselves as Sonic Youth and then sang about white trash and possum, two of the best Americana road trip topics ever (after Deliverance, of course). Their washtub bass -- named the Holey Ghost -- and electric washboard made for a truly authentic cracker spectacle.


?
Dino Felipe is nothing short of genius, brilliantly contrasting melody with feedback. His set was complemented by gifted veteran drummer Ricky Pollo, not to mention choreographer and all around dance badass Ana Mendez, who gyrated the entire set with a tambourine in hand. Otto Von Schirach closed out the night in dramatic style with Mr. Feathers and Alligator Jesus in full regalia.

Given that this was the season opener, it seems the gallery has set the bar very high for the rest of the year. We imagine, though, this bubble will not pop.
- miami new times

Art and music are like pb and j, jeans and t-shirts, husband and husband.
Whatever your preference, music and art pretty much always go well together, and sometimes great artists make great music. That is the case with husband and wife team Tony Kapel and Maitejosune Urrechaga make both art and beautiful music together.
Once known as Mod’lone, their new incarnation has been given the jaunty name Pocket of Lollipops. The duo has been creating all sorts of interesting material for many years now. Having just returned from playing shows in New York, Maryland and Virginia, these two are back to impress Miami audiences with their unique sound. The group mixes culture and technology to create intensity of sound. Often, the auditory art is accompanied by visual projections, created mostly by local artists Dylan Romer or the TM Sisters. The art creates a theatrical setting and it moves with the sounds of the drums and the bass.
These two don’t just jam well together, they also make some impressive art apart. Maitejosune Urrechaga’s work is influenced by graffiti art, which she mixes with more traditional brushwork. She prefers group projects, which include oddball outcomes, such as designing mini refrigerators at Pimp My Kart or her Mind the Snails show, which ran during Miami’s Art Basel and received a nod from the Best Of New Times.
Tony Kapel’s most recent success outside of POL includes "Closing Time," a documentary on the DIY Miami art and music scenes. Tony has been playing drums for 20 years and his talent and dedication are apparent in this newest project.
One of the group’s songs is currently featured in a London-based exhibition, “The End of Something,” which takes a musical approach to the global financial crisis which remains a pain in all of our behinds. Next month, and again reflective of our times, POL will perform at the Life is Art, An Environmentally Artistic Miami Showcase.
Tonight, after 9 p.m., head down to Heathrow Lounge for Free Your Soul Wednesdays where POL will be performing. Other bands playing include Honey Henny Lime, Majestic, London Heights and Tinfoil Apparatus. DJ Nick will be spinning some loungey music with some hip hop and punk included.

- NBC Miami

Miami painter Maitejosune Urrechaga puts down the brush and picks up the bass
Maitejosune Urrechaga seems surprised to be playing bass ....the Miami electronica group founded last year by guitarist HG and Urrechaga's husband, Tony Kapel, a drummer, writer and videographer.
"I've been with Tony for 14 years, and he's been part of so many bands," the painter and middle-school art teacher says. "I've thought about it, but it's like this push happened with the music. I have done art for so many years and then, all of a sudden, for this to come up, it's great. It's just odd."

Urrechaga, whose musical tastes include Modest Mouse, Pixies and hip-hop acts, has always listened to music while creating art on canvas, soda cans, mini refrigerators, wood and other objects she exhibits in shows throughout the United States and in France. But the 31-year-old had never considered becoming a musician. Aside from a chromaharp she played in elementary school, Urrechaga never played an instrument before picking up the bass this past November.
By February, she and other members were at the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood, performing music for local performance artists the TM Sisters' first solo show, Idealtonight. Urrechaga.

Urrechaga, however, seems made for this music. Consider the description of her art that appears on the Web site for the artists collective Rasa Productions, Rasa-productions.com. "My artwork represents what my mind is thinking when things collide and become part of you," she writes. "Much of my work intertwines real subjects with floating shapes, bubble or lines. This usually puts the subject in an outer space or dreamlike place."

As well, she easily could be describing the recent show at Uva Lounge in Coral Gables. A compelling and transformative instrumental music can make the listener feel as if he also were floating. While the band rehearsed for the performance, the musicians appeared to play intuitively, with distinctive personalities that nonetheless drew from a single source.

Perhaps it's also the result of living together in a house where paintings, music and film are created. "Obviously, Tony and I live together," Urrechaga says. We're all, I guess, feeding off each other … so it seems like we're working back and forth and somehow things are working."

Since playing the Idealtonight show, they have been regularly incorporating video from the TM Sisters and digital artist Dylan Romer into its performances. "It just seems that there's another thing that's adding to it," Urrechaga says. "We really didn't plan it. It just seems to be working."

by
Colleen Dougher
- citylink

Pocket of Lollipops, “Cute Chaos”
Filmmaker Tony Kapel makes up one half of Pocket of Lollipops. The other half is his wife, singer-bassist and visual artist Maitejosune Urrechaga. Recently Kapel posted this video for “Cute Chaos,” their simple song about feeling like teenagers again. The video, which includes footage from live shows, a picnic and the pair installing Urrechaga’s soda tabs installation at the Art and Culture Center earlier this year, combines all of their talents in one fun video that left the line, “In an instant I feel back to the teenager I was,” echoing in my head for at least an hour. - citylink

Pocket of Lollipops
Maite Urrechaga and Tony Kapel, members of Pocket of Lollipops, showed their very experimental work, inspired by some great 80’s and 90’s bands, such as Violent Femmes, Jesus and Mary Chain, Devo and B52’s.
The couple, that’s actually married and has been together for over 15 years, likes to mix other types of art to their music. Maite, bassist, singer and painter; and Tony, a drummer, vocalist and movie director, use art installations in some of their presentations to create an even more special environment. Since they started the band – about two years ago – they believe the music scene in Miami is improving and giving lots of opportunities for local bands to show their works.
http://www.myspace.com/pocketoflollipops
By: Bruna Indalecio - grungekat

t's common knowledge that women always find average-looking dudes inexplicably more attractive when said guy plays an instrument or fronts a band. That's why many of us bought guitars in the first place. But does the same rule apply for female artists also? We think so.

Listen, if it's okay for women to swoon over male rock stars and flash their nips mid-set, then it's okay for us to compile a list of hot female performers scheduled to grace the stages at this year's Miami Music Festival. From R&B to indie post-punk to folk-pop, every genre is represented. Consider this a mini-guide of sorts.
Maria Zouroudis
Gerne: Pop
Playing: The Grove Spot; Friday, November 12, at 10pm

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Cat Shell
Genre: Pop/Jazz
Playing: The Soul of Miami Stage; Friday, November 12, at 11pm

Myspace
Selena Jordan
Genre: R&B
Playing: Tangia; Friday, November 12, 10pm

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Kaleigh Baker
Genre: Folk/Blues
Playing: Flavour; Friday November 12, at 10pm

Hau Tran via Myspace
Alicia Lemke
Genre: Pop/Folk
Playing: Yuca, Friday; November 12, at 9pm

Myspace
Maitejosune Urrechaga (of Pockets of Lollipops)
Genre: Post Punk/Shoegaze
Playing: The Stage; November 12, at 1am

Myspace
Tara Priya
Genre: Pop/Blues
Playing: Transit Lounge; November 13, at 9pm

Tara Priya
Liset Alea
Genre: Acoustic/Latin
Playing: Bardot; Friday, November 12, at 10pm

Photo by Serg Alexander/eyeworksproduction.com
Vivan Girls
Genre: Punk/Surf
Playing: Gemma; Saturday, November 13, at 12:30am - miami new times

If you’ve been at all acquainted with the music scene in the past few years, you’ve likely heard of Pocket of Lollipops, a pair of locals who describe their own unique rhythmic flavor as “posh punk." The musical mainstays have been performing around these parts since 2008, and from the looks of their diligent show schedule and sizable home studio, they won’t be going anywhere soon.


The band started as a duo, a wife-and-husband team consisting of singer and bassist Maitejosune Urrechaga (Maite for short) and drummer and back-up vocalist Tony Kapel. Music is more than a hobby for these two. Maite and Tony live together in the Grove, and practice and record at home, so they eat, sleep, and breathe this stuff. This airtight communication is felt all over Pocket's albums.

And this rings doubly true for the band’s newest LP, Thanks Theo, as it may be Pocket's most elaborate effort yet. A swirl of jagged rhythms, the album’s highs recall post-punk heroes like Pylon. Urrechaga’s disaffected vocals are at times spat out like something sour. The songs tend toward free-form exploration, turning over a rhythm several times while cycling through call-and-response choruses, singsongy hooks, and pointed spoken word segments.

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“Still in the dark/it’s all downhill from here,” Urrechaga flatly intones on the ragged “Mcop II."

But the album is definitely meant to be listened to whole, with motifs winking at each other and songs melding into the next. “This is the first album where I wrote pretty much all the lyrics,” Urrechaga says in her Coconut Grove home studio. “I used to just rearrange them out of Tony’s notebooks without asking,” she says, glancing at her husband and collaborator with a knowing grin.


The album’s title is both an in-joke with guitarist Theo Rodino, who the band has been collaborating with live, and an allusion to the letters Vincent van Gogh sent to his younger brother. The band frequently collaborates with outside musicians for performances, but insists that they remain a duo. The entirety of instruments on Thanks Theo were played by the two. “We both played guitars on the album," Kapel explains. "I was just responding to the tracks, but the repeating parts become riffs in your head.” Kapel also controls the boards when the band records, and says the fullness of the album's sound is the result of years of sonic tinkering.

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“I’ve learned you can emphasize parts just by where they are in the mix,” Kapel says. “You don’t have to put a bunch of effects on it for it to stand out.” This also marks the first album the duo has worked on for over a year, sometimes revisiting earlier tracks that would have previously made the cut at first listen. One song was almost axed entirely — the frenetic energy of “Cake Type Sounds” wouldn’t have made it had the band not hustled to record it at the last minute.

The richness and complexity of Thanks Theo is worth the wait. The album is set to drop at the band’s release party later this month at Jolt Radio, but we’re premiering the aforementioned “Cake Type Sounds” ahead of schedule. Give it a listen above.

Pocket of Lollipops' Thanks Theo Release Party with Oculus, Juju Pie, and Alexandre Merbouti. 6 p.m. Saturday, February 27, at Jolt Radio, 3454 NW Seventh Ave., Miami; 786-760-6123; joltradio.org. Admission is free. - David Bennett